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Posted by Ben Huber on May 5, 2014 in Videogames 
Capy has quickly become one of my favorite game developers out there, with their insanely clever and creative collection of games (Sword & Sworcery EP, Below, and now Super Time Force). The latter is finally arriving on Xbox 360 and Xbox One on May 14th. The general concept of the game is that as you platform through the levels, each previous life will repeat its journey beside you, killing the same enemies as before and performing the same actions. If you die enough, eventually you can have an entire army of characters rampaging through the screen — until you get past the point where they died. Check out the trailer below! Read more…
Tags: capy, Indie Games, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Posted by Bob Muir on Apr 29, 2014 in Videogames 
I can’t blame you if you haven’t purchased a current-gen console yet. Yes, the PS4 and Xbox One are no longer considered “next-gen,” but that doesn’t mean everyone has made the switch from their PS3 and Xbox 360 yet. That’s why it’s good to hear about plans like this one. Bungie’s upcoming sci-fi MMO-FPS Destiny will be released on all four of the previously mentioned systems, which means many players may pick it up on last-gen consoles. But if you upgrade your system, you won’t lose all your progress. Read more…
Tags: Bungie, Destiny, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Posted by Bob Muir on Apr 8, 2014 in Videogames 
Both the PS4 and Xbox One promised many ways to stream and share footage of gamers playing games, but not all of that functionality was there at launch. While it was easy to record footage on both consoles — Xbox One’s version is called Game DVR — it wasn’t always as easy to share it with everyone you wanted to. As the largest video site on the internet, YouTube was where most people wanted to upload their videos. With the latest update to the Xbox One’s YouTube app, you can finally share your game videos on YouTube instead of just within the Xbox One’s video app. Other improvements include allowing YouTube videos to run in Snap mode, the ability to earn achievements, and the addition of YouTube channels to the OneGuide. But really, the most important thing is the ability to easily share game footage. That’s crucial in the modern gaming landscape. Read more…
Tags: Microsoft, Xbox One, YouTube
Posted by Bob Muir on Mar 25, 2014 in Videogames 
Microsoft often sets up Xbox Live events where gamers can play with various celebrities. With that context in place, it’s easy to see how impressionable people might think an Obama impersonator is actually the real deal, even if there’s no way the president would take the time to play himself. That’s what happens in this collection of videos: a damn good Obama impersonator plays Titanfall in character, promoting the Affordable Care Act and cracking political jokes. His voice isn’t a perfect match, but he has Obama’s inflections down, so I’d imagine this sounded pretty convincing when compressed over an Xbox headset. So does this mean Obama has reversed his position on gun control? Read more…
Tags: Barack Obama, Titanfall, Xbox One
Posted by Bob Muir on Feb 5, 2014 in Uncategorized, Videogames 
Did you know that Thief, the reboot to Eidos’s stealth-franchise, is coming out on February 25? There isn’t much buzz, which probably stems from the delays the title has had during its troubled development. But watch this latest trailer, because despite a smaller marketing budget, this game looks pretty cool. I know some longtime fans of the series seem to have concerns, but as someone who has never played any of the previous games, I’m liking what I see. It looks like a good mixture of stealth and action, and the fact that you could play through the game without killing any enemies is surely enticing to those looking to do more than just build up a body count in a game. Read more…
Tags: Eidos, PS3, PS4, square enix, thief, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 28, 2014 in Videogames 
“Wait, I thought Microsoft already owned Gears of War, the solid dude-bro cover-based shooter that helped cement the Xbox 360’s reputation throughout it’s lifetime!” Well, other than helpfully recapping what Gears of War is, that would be wrong, Mr. Strawman-I-Made-Up! Epic Games, the developer, owned the IP and made an exclusive agreement with Microsoft for the game to be Xbox 360 exclusive. After an initial trilogy and a spin-off by a different developer, Epic seemed to have cooled on making any more games in the series. (And there’s nothing wrong with a series knowing when to end instead of running forever!) But now Microsoft has bought the IP, and there’s not much reason to do that unless you plan on making more games in the series. Read more…
Tags: Gears of War, Microsoft, Xbox One
Posted by Bob Muir on Jan 8, 2014 in Cinema, Videogames 
The most recent game based on Alien/Aliens was 2013’s Aliens: Colonial Marines, one of the worst games of the year that failed to live up to any of the apparently-false advertising and press demos. Everyone’s rightfully wary of any future games in the franchise, but let’s give Creative Assembly (known for Total War) a shot. They’re making Alien: Isolation, a survival horror game about Amanda Ripley — the daughter mentioned as having died of old age at the beginning of Aliens — exploring a space station to find info on Ellen Ripley and the Nostromo. Instead of hundreds of xenomorph enemies that are treated like cannon fodder, there’s only one, nine-foot-tall, formidable xenomorph that hunts Amanda throughout the game; they’re clearly aiming more for the horror of Alien than the action of Aliens with this game. Read more…
Tags: Alien, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Posted by Bob Muir on Dec 17, 2013 in Videogames 
I’ve only had my PS4 copy of Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag for a month, so it’s easy to forget that the game was out a bit earlier for last-gen systems. In that context, I suppose it’s not too strange that it’s getting its first story-based DLC today, after some previous multiplayer content. The DLC is called Freedom Cry, and it follows first mate Adewale in his quest to free slaves 15 years after the main game’s events. There are nine missions, and as a reminder, you get them for “free” if you purchased the Season Pass. The game is getting a great reception, so more content is good, but I’m more curious if they’ll make a sequel to this game, perhaps even separate from the Assassin’s Creed series proper. Read more…
Tags: Assassin's Creed, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Posted by Bob Muir on Dec 4, 2013 in Videogames 
Microsoft’s creativity game/software Project Spark has entered beta, and you can test it out right now, with some conditions. First, you had to have signed up on the game’s website; don’t worry if you haven’t done it yet, because you can still sign-up now. Beta invites are going out, so you may have already received yours. The biggest barrier to entry, however, is the fact that the beta is only available on Windows 8.1. That’s right, there’s no Xbox One beta support, and the beta won’t run on Windows 7. So if you’re one of the people suffering through Windows 8.1, feel free to sign-up and away. All those who thought buying an Xbox One might let them into the beta, you’ll be disappointed. I know I would be, but Microsoft still hasn’t replaced my broken Xbox One Kinect and controller because they cancelled the replacement orders without telling me, so I’m not even using my launch unit yet. Huh. Read more…
Tags: Project Spark, Windows, Xbox One
Posted by Bob Muir on Nov 5, 2013 in Videogames 
At this point, it’s hard to tell whether Konami has been poorly communicating information about Metal Gear Solid V on purpose (a la Metal Gear Solid 2) or if it’s just due to their usual bad management. We had heard that there would be two parts to the upcoming sequel: Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes, a prologue (similar to MGS2‘s Tanker scenario), and Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, the main, longer game (similar to MGS2‘s Big Shell scenario). After the rather inelegant reveal that The Phantom Pain, a game advertised as an independent game made by a fake studio, was unsurprisingly MGSV, conflicting information suggested that both parts of the game would be sold together. Konami has just announced that this isn’t true: Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes will be released by itself in Spring 2014. Read more…
Tags: Metal Gear Solid, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Posted by Bob Muir on Oct 23, 2013 in Videogames 
Respawn Entertainment’s highly-anticipated next-gen shooter Titanfall has finally been dated. What seemed like a possible launch title for Xbox One slipped back and is now confirmed to be released on March 11, 2014 in North America, with a March 13, 2014 release date in Europe. The game is not only coming out on Xbox One, but also PC and Xbox 360, though I think the 360 version won’t be purchased as much. But are you somehow going to have some spare money after the new console launches this fall? Then Respawn is offering you an expensive Titanfall collector’s edition. Read more…
Tags: Titanfall, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Posted by Bob Muir on Sep 18, 2013 in Videogames 
Shinji Mikami is well known for directing Resident Evil and Resident Evil 4, classics of survival horror (or I guess just horror for that second one). He and his studio Tango Gameworks have teamed up with Bethesda to make The Evil Within, a new horror game for most major platforms. It does look pretty spooky, with the enemies looking like a mixture of science gone wrong and forbidden occult magic. The Evil Within is coming out sometime in 2014, but hopefully it will be playable at this year’s Tokyo Game Show and we can get more enticing details. Read more…
Tags: Horror, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Posted by Bob Muir on Sep 4, 2013 in Videogames 
Contrary to popular belief, Disney and Harmonix’s Fantasia: Music Evolved does have some classical music in it. Just look at this gameplay demo of part of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons in the newly revealed section of the game called “The Haven.” I’m not sure how much the area is incorporated into the actual game, but it has plenty of charm, including some sort of fantasy snow creature. I’m hoping the game is filled with many of these realms, though I’m sure there are multiple songs featured in a single realm. Hopefully there is the option for even more classical music as DLC. Read more…
Tags: Disney, Music, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Posted by Bob Muir on Aug 28, 2013 in Videogames 
If you haven’t quite reversed your position on the Xbox One yet, here’s a few more reasons to consider buying it at launch. Three exclusive games will have bonus Day One content, provided you buy the Day One Editions or buy a digital copy within the first two weeks. Besides having special packaging (that matches if you buy all three games), Dead Rising 3, Forza Motorsport 5, and Ryse: Son of Rome will have the following additional content. Read more…
Tags: Xbox One
Posted by Bob Muir on Aug 20, 2013 in Videogames 
Alright, that header pun is pretty bad, but more importantly: Gamescom is starting in Germany, so you know what that means: new demos, trailers, and sizzle trailers, i.e. the kind that feature a ton of different games trying to sell you on a system. The Xbox One is slowly recovering after a disastrous reveal period, and now that Microsoft has made an about-face on pretty much every negative aspect of the system, these games are actually looking kinda good. Alright, they’re just looking good in general! New console launches are always rocky, but if you choose to upgrade now instead of waiting a year, it at least looks like you’ll have some decent game options in the meantime. Read more…
Tags: Xbox One
Posted by Bob Muir on Aug 15, 2013 in Animation, Videogames 
“Fantasia” is a name that evokes a lot of musical history and artistry. While some may argue (myself included) about the song selection in Harmonix’s Disney Fantasia: Music Evolved, it seems that the music-oriented studio is still trying to stay true to Walt Disney’s original concept of marrying music with fantastic imagery. This latest look helps contextualize what Harmonix is doing in the broader scope of the somewhat-ongoing Fantasia project. In the meantime, it has also been announced that composer Inon Zur is contributing original music for the game. Zur has done music for games like Dragon Age and Prince of Persia, so he’s a solid vet to have involved. Read more…
Tags: Disney, Music, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Posted by Bob Muir on Jun 20, 2013 in Videogames 
As much as Microsoft tried to impress with the Xbox One at last week’s E3, they and all the developers working on games for the system couldn’t shake one thing: the shadow of the console’s DRM and online policies. Microsoft hoped to steer the conversation away after Sony showed them up with their support of used games and no online requirements, but very little they said was positive in the eyes of gamers. It’s likely that shareholders also weren’t happy with Microsoft’s stock dropping while Sony’s rose. Microsoft’s narrative even suffered after Jimmy Fallon got a big applause from his audience for mentioning that the PS4 supported used games. Well, it’s finally happened. After all that, Microsoft has blinked. Read more…
Tags: Microsoft, Xbox One
Posted by Bob Muir on Jun 10, 2013 in Videogames 
Just like last year, Ubisoft got Aisha Tyler to host their E3 press conference. Wearing a shirt with the hashtag #girlwood on it, Ubisoft didn’t have much to show, but there were a few major new reveals. Click through to see what was said about hot games like Splinter Cell: Blacklist, Rayman Legends, and Watch Dogs, as well as all the new games. Read more…
Tags: PS3, PS4, Ubisoft, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Posted by Bob Muir on Jun 10, 2013 in Videogames 
The E3 press conferences from non-platform makers generally have fewer announcements than their Big 3 friends, often retreading a few announcements, but there’s still some worthwhile news. With a new console generation about to happen (or already happening, if you’re satisfied with a Wii U), Electronic Arts has more than usual to show, for both Xbox One and PlayStation 4. Read more…
Tags: Dragon Age, EA, Electronic Arts, PS4, Xbox One
Posted by Bob Muir on Jun 10, 2013 in Videogames 
Microsoft just finished their Xbox One press conference, and we’ve covered all the important game reveals at the event. Much was revealed, but the conference was lacking in many details, so if you see something below that interests you, be sure to wait for more info that is sure to be revealed as E3 2013 begins fully tomorrow. Click below and let’s see if Microsoft can make up for their disappointing Xbox One reveal a few weeks back! Read more…
Tags: Microsoft, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Posted by Bob Muir on Jun 10, 2013 in Videogames 
Even though it’s not an Xbox One exclusive, Microsoft led the start of its E3 2013 press conference with the first footage of the anticipated Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. Since the game is an open world game set in a wide-open desert region, the implementation of stealth has been dramatically redesigned. It looks like a very unique experience with stunning graphics. Naturally, the game is also coming out on PS4, though Microsoft didn’t want to mention that. It’s all looking quite impressive, so watch footage from the stream below! Read more…
Tags: Konami, Metal Gear Solid, PS4, Xbox One
Posted by Bob Muir on Jun 5, 2013 in Videogames 
Harmonix, creator of Guitar Hero, Rock Band, and Dance Central, has finally unveiled their new game, and it’s quite a surprise. Fantasia: Music Evolved is a collaboration with Disney that has players enter portals to control the musical landscape with their hands, playing along and remixing the song as they go. If they don’t like a song, for instance, they can bring in a string accompaniment or ska horns. The game is played with the Kinect on Xbox 360 or Xbox One, as the game is exclusive to Microsoft’s platform. Read more…
Tags: Disney, Music, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Posted by Bob Muir on May 23, 2013 in Videogames 
I covered the major details of Microsoft’s Xbox One reveal, but what does the internet think of it? Hardcore gamers are almost unanimous in their disapproval, but nothing provides commentary quite like the original presentation itself. No, I’m not going to link the full presentation, but two user-edited videos sums up the system Microsoft is trying to sell. Read more…
Tags: Microsoft, Xbox One
Posted by Bob Muir on May 22, 2013 in Videogames 
Yesterday Microsoft finally spilled the beans — well, a little at least — on their next videogame console: the Xbox One. I hesitate to call it that though, because going by their presentation, it seems more geared as an entertainment system than a machine that focuses on games. The “one” in the name refers to how it’s an all-in-one media experience, which is not surprising. Going by how much Microsoft has been pushing and expanding the non-gaming applications of the Xbox 360, this seems like a natural extension. I’m just not sure it’s a good One. Read more…
Tags: Microsoft, Xbox One
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